Can’t use a competitor’s coupon? (Don’t tell my mom.)

As my loving mother always says, “it doesn’t hurt to ask”. And this time I’ll agree with her :) Especially because she just tried this herself and came out with some pretty surprising results.

She wanted this fancy pants coffee maker but it was all sold out at Bed Bath and Beyond. So what does she do? She brings her clipped out coupon (showing the coffee maker at $20 off) into Best Buy and proudly finds a manager. Now, if I were accompanying her this is usually at this point where i’d be squirming and thinking stuff like, “geez mom, you ALWAYS do this!” or “this is SO embarassing!” like a little 13 y/o girl. Luckily though I wasn’t there -my dad was. And like most men, he quietly walked away and just let her do her magic ;)And what do ya know, it worked! The Manager gladly accepted it and offered her the best customer service she had hoped to receive. Wow, she is good. And so is that manager! Perhaps we can all get away with this stuff now that the economy is in shambles? Or maybe women are the only ones that could work this charm? I’d be curious to see the outcome if my mohawk’d self were to give it a try ;) Either way though, it’s awesome. Good for you mom!

I can’t promise you that it’ll work at all stores, but there surely isn’t any shame in at least TRYING to use a coupon at a competitor’s store. After all, they’d much rather have your business. It may take a little talking or threating to leave the store, but if you’ve got the balls to try you just might save yourself some cash. Which is perfect, cuz then you can treat me to a few beers!

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I, J. Money, only claim the thoughts from my head. I am not a banker, CPA, money manager or anything else of that sort. Please seek a professional for any "real" advice. More info: privacy & disclosure page